D.A. investigator intentionally shot himself, police say

A gunshot wound that critically injured an investigator for the Ventura County District Attorney's Office last month was intentionally self-inflicted, Ventura police said Wednesday.

The investigator, whom police have declined to identify, shot himself in the abdomen Dec. 29 in a parking lot outside an office building in the 600 block of County Square Drive in Ventura, police said. District attorney's investigators work in a building beside the parking lot.

Police initially said the shooting appeared to be accidental, but detectives later determined that was not the case, said Ventura police Cmdr. Mark Stadler.

"We have not been able to determine what his ultimate intent was. All we have been able to determine is that he did intentionally shoot himself," Stadler said Wednesday.

The investigator, who was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, was in critical condition after the shooting. He remained in intensive care Wednesday, Stadler said.

Robert Briner, chief of the district attorney's Bureau of Investigation, said the investigator was on the mend. He declined to comment further.

Police believe the investigator was seated in his car when he shot himself, Stadler said. The investigator was on duty at the time, officials said.

Ventura police decided to not release the investigator's name or age because the wound was self-inflicted and detectives could not determine his ultimate intent, Stadler said.